This table shows the conjugations for the weak verb hopen, the strong verb binden, and for ben the verb ‘to be’: Weak verbs add –de or – te, so here becomes herde and fele becomes felte the second person singular takes the ending –st ( thou herdest) and plural forms take –n ( they felten).
In the past tense in Middle English, strong verbs change their stems ( sing becomes sang or song) and add –e in the second person singular ( thou songe), and –en in the plural ( they songen). Strong verbs form the past tense by changing their stem (I sing, I sang you throw, you threw), while weak verbs add a suffix to the stem (I wish, I wished you laugh, you laughed). With the past tense, it is necessary to begin by making a distinction, which still applies in Modern English, between strong and weak verbs.
- en in all plural forms ( we/ye/they senden).- eth in the third person singular ( she sendeth).- est in the second person singular ( thou sendest).- e in the first person singular ( I sende).There are, of course, irregular verbs, but for the most part, verbs in the present tense add the following endings to the stem: Although Middle English has more inflections than Modern English, if you look back at the Old English inflections, you’ll see that the system is relatively simple.
